Namaste.
Hello and welcome to my crazy world of craft and colour.
Hop on board the magical rainbow bus and enjoy the journey.
I have no planned destination, my mantra is "I follow my own path, my heart leads the way".

Followers

Monday, 24 October 2016

It's been another long day.Yesterday, I took my son Ben to spend his birthday money on some WiiU games, (he has waited almost a month to buy them). He also had a voucher which he chose to spend in Waterstones, his favourite book store. Shopping is a huge challenge for him, even when it is for things that he really wants. I am pretty sure that he prefers Waterstones to other shops because of the quite atmosphere in there. Too much noise and bright lighting causes him sensory overload. Anyway, he spent his birthday money and voucher and is very happy.I'm up to date with my DT allocations, but my craft room was in chaos. Some of my crafty friends would say that it was really tidy compared to theirs, but I like to have everything in order and in it's place. My new awesome Illustrator markers didn't have a place, so this called for some rearranging of my workspace. I started with the reorganisation of my marker pen storage tower.I confess, I have an addiction to markers and still don't have enough Spectrum Noir pen storage trays for them all, but seeing as my new Illustrators are now my most favoured marker to use, they really do deserve a place on the tower. I need to keep them within easy reach.Anyway, I moved the trays, emptied some of them out to make room, dropped a few on the floor, shifted boxes of card and paper, did my OCD thing that I have to do with my packaging tops (haha I shall have to show you that someday soon), added scraps to the scrap box and the usual tidy up to meet my fussy standards. I NEED a clear desk to work at, an untidy desk fills my mind, it steals valuable creative space with too many distractions.It was almost tidy and I was adding the last few markers that deserve a precious spot on the tower and.....OH MY GOSH!!!! (or similar) thoughts sent a panic through my mind!!! THERE WAS A GAP!!! A MARKER WAS MISSING!!! (yes I am guilty of using too many exclamation marks, but I love them!). It wasn't any old marker either, it was one of my new precious Illustrator markers! :-oTWO WHOLE HOURS!!! I searched for it. I knew that I wouldn't rest until it was found. I emptied the bin, moved everything around whilst cursing to myself that it had to be here somewhere, markers don't grow legs and do a runner!!! My back felt like it was going to snap I was aching so much, who knew that clearing craft crap up could give you such a good workout!In desperation and after remembering that I had migrated downstairs to the living room to finish colouring my last DT allocation, I called down to Ben to check the living room for said lost marker.Ten minutes later, he appears with CR11 Flame Red in his hand - my hero! It was under the sofa all the time!I am now at peace with my markers (my daughter wouldn't have batted an eyelid, a different generation, it's easy come, easy go in her replaceable world) and I also have a tidy workspace ready for my next allocation and soon to be recorded tutorials for my YouTube channel.

Tidy Desk - Tidy Mind - Happy Face

Whippets

I was asked the names of our two whippets.

We have Blu, a female, blue whippet with a white cross on her chest (she turned 2 last month). We have had Blu since she was an 8 week old pup. I drove a 17 hour round trip to Cumbria and back to collect her.

Archie is a male, brindle whippet, ex racer and was going to be put to sleep the following day if we hadn't adopted him a year and a half ago. Archie is three months older than Blu, smaller and as fast as the wind. He has a shocking overbite, but it only makes us love him even more. He and Blu are inseparable. He had been kept in outdoor garden kennel for the first year of his life. I was told that his owner had died from cancer and that his neighbours who also kept and raced whippets could keep one of his kennel mates, but they didn't have the room for him as well :-(. He wasn't toilet trained and often cowered if I moved too quick, or raised my arm to reach up for something (that breaks my heart), so who knows what he went through, but all he has ever had here is unconditional love and the best care (I would even say that both whippets are truly spoilt). He is now the most cheeky and loving dog that you could ever imagine, all he wants is to be loved, snuggle up on my lap and please everyone.

I will tell you some of our adventures and share some whippy pictures with you soon.

I'm going to bed now to catch up on my subscribed YouTube channels. I have a varied mix of mostly paper craft and yarn related channels to watch plus a few random ones, that all keep me company during my sleepless nights. Sometimes I get lucky and fall asleep with heavy eyes, so watching does help, but I still hear everything.

I don't craft myself late at night unless I am really behind and need to meet a DT deadline. I prefer to work in natural daylight and to be in my craft room with it's awesome view of the harbour and the Purbecks of which I am truly blessed to have.

The view from my craft room

Saturday, 22 October 2016

Where do I start?!?It's very late and it has been a very long day.My teenage son has Autism and he wakes up very early.We have two whippets, they also wake up very early. They often want to go out into the garden in the middle of the night to have a pee, parade about in the moonlight or chase a cheeky urban fox which they can hear barking (is that noise a bark or a howl?). The sly old fox taunts and teases them from a safe distance, they all keep me awake. I hear everything, whippets, foxes, badgers, owls and the occasional fog horn from the harbour. Sleep is a stranger to me.My craft room is my escape, it is my peace and where I am happiest when I am at home. My favourite place though, is the beach and I will often take some of my artwork there. I sketch or colour listening to the waves, letting my imagination take me on a journey far out way beyond the horizon. Nature, especially the sea, is the biggest inspiration for my art. Colour is so important to me.I recently joined the Spectrum Noir Design Team at Crafter's Companion - I absolutely love using their products and creating designs for them. I love the challenge of coming up with new ideas with my own twist to showcase their quality products/tools. Today (now yesterday - as I've said previously, it's very late!) saw the world launch of the Spectrum Noir Illustrator markers. Professional artist quality alcohol markers with an awesome soft brush nib at one end and a fine detailed nib at the other. I have had these markers for a week or so to design samples for the launch on Hochanda - I LOVE THESE MARKERS!It's now 2:00am (stupid o'clock)! Time to let the whippies out to chase the fox they can never catch (the fence is too high) and then to bed. I'll close my tired eyes, rest and dream half awake, but never sleep. I hear everything.Sleep is a stranger to me.

Here's two of my designs from the Spectrum Noir Illustrator world launch.